FactSet beats fourth-quarter revenue estimates as more clients sign up

Reuters Staff

2 Min Read

(Reuters) - Financial information provider FactSet Research Systems Inc (FDS.N) reported a better-than-expected quarterly revenue on Tuesday, as its signed up more clients for its analytics and data services.

Shares of the company were up 4.6 percent at $178.59 in afternoon trading.

The company signed up 115 new clients in the fourth quarter ended Aug. 31, adding commercial banking customers such as Danske Bank and Banco Santander Totta to its largely investment banking client base. FactSet had 4,744 clients at the end of the quarter.

The Norwalk, Connecticut-based company has been introducing services such as portfolio analysis, online data on different asset classes, research and trading services through acquisitions as it seeks to widen its customer base beyond its traditional clientele of desktop users.

The new services have come at a time when Wall Street asset managers curb spending on financial data services.

The company said its revenue rose 13.7 percent to $326.6 million in the fourth quarter ended Aug. 31. Analysts on average had expected $325.3 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

FactSet’s net income fell to $59.6 million or $1.52 per share in the fourth quarter, from $144.3 million, or $3.55 per share, a year earlier.

The company’s profit in the year-ago quarter benefited from a $112.5 million gain related to the sale of its Market Metrics business.

The company said it expects current-quarter revenue of $327 million to $333 million and adjusted earnings of $1.93 to $1.99 per share. Analysts were expecting $1.94 per share and revenue of $327.4 million.